Apparatus and methods for providing and presenting customized channel information

ABSTRACT

Apparatus and methods for providing and presenting customized channel information include receiving service attribute information corresponding to a base service, where the base service is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentation to a device. The apparatus and methods further include customizing the service attribute information, and providing channel information to the device. The channel information comprising the customized service attribute information, thereby providing a custom view of a channel.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY UNDER 35 U.S.C. §119

The present Application for Patent claims priority to ProvisionalApplication No. 60/716,408, entitled “CUSTOMIZATION OF COMMON CHANNELINFORMATION PER CONTENT RETAILER IN A PROGRAM GUIDE, AND FOR THE CONTENTPROVIDED FOR THE CHANNEL,” filed Sep. 12, 2005, and assigned to theassignee hereof and hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein.

REFERENCE TO CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS FOR PATENT

The present Application for Patent is related to the followingco-pending U.S. Patent Applications:

“METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DISTRIBUTING CONTENT TO SUPPORT MULTIPLECUSTOMER SERVICE ENTITIES AND CONTENT PACKAGERS”, having Attorney DocketNo. 050012, filed concurrently herewith, assigned to the assigneehereof, and expressly incorporated by reference herein, “APPARATUS ANDMETHODS OF OPEN AND CLOSED PACKAGE SUBSCRIPTION”, having Attorney DocketNo. 051242, filed concurrently herewith, assigned to the assigneehereof, and expressly incorporated by reference herein, “METHOD ANDAPPARATUS FOR DELIVERING CONTENT BASED ON RECEIVERS CHARACTERISTICS”,having Attorney Docket No. 051256, filed concurrently herewith, assignedto the assignee hereof, and expressly incorporated by reference herein,“APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR DELIVERING AND PRESENTING AUXILIARY SERVICESFOR CUSTOMIZING A CHANNEL”, having Attorney Docket No. 051263, filedconcurrently herewith, assigned to the assignee hereof, and expresslyincorporated by reference herein, “METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR DELIVERINGREGIONAL PARAMETERS”, having Attorney Docket No. 060109, filedconcurrently herewith, assigned to the assignee hereof, and expresslyincorporated by reference herein, “METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR FRAGMENTINGSYSTEM INFORMATION MESSAGES IN WIRELESS NETWORKS”, having AttorneyDocket No. 060136, filed concurrently herewith, assigned to the assigneehereof, and expressly incorporated by reference herein, “FLEXIBLE SYSTEMFOR DISTRIBUTING CONTENT TO A DEVICE”, having Attorney Docket No.060137, filed concurrently herewith, assigned to the assignee hereof,and expressly incorporated by reference herein, “SYSTEM FOR DISTRIBUTINGPACKAGES AND CHANNELS TO A DEVICE” having Attorney Docket No. 060138,filed concurrently herewith, assigned to the assignee hereof, andexpressly incorporated by reference herein; and

“METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR PROVIDING SYSTEM INFORMATION TO A WIRELESSDEVICE”, having Attorney Docket No. 060153P1, filed concurrentlyherewith, assigned to the assignee hereof, and expressly incorporated byreference herein.

BACKGROUND

The disclosed embodiments relate generally to the operation of contentdistribution systems, and more particularly, to methods and apparatusfor providing and presenting a customized view of a channel in a mediadistribution system.

In media distribution systems, a media program guide (MPG), whichdescribes a delivery schedule of available content or services on agiven set of channels, may be provided by content retailers (CRs) in adistribution network. For example, a content provider (CP) that operateson the distribution network may provide the content or services to oneor more CRs in communication with the network. The CRs provide the MPG,which includes information relating to the content or services, todevice users who then may select content or services to be received by adevice. For example, a device user may select and/or subscribe toreceive content or services that include multimedia content, clips,programs, scripts, data, customer services, or any other type of contentor service.

Currently, channels that represent the content or services are deliveredto multiple content distributors and consumers with identical contentand descriptions. In order to provide for retailer-specific marketingand branding opportunities, and in order to provide productdifferentiation, it is desirable to be able to customize thepresentation of the channel and associated supplemental data based onthe specific content retailer.

SUMMARY

The described embodiments provide systems, apparatus, devices,computer-readable media, processors and methods for providing andgenerating customized content information.

In one embodiment, a method for providing content information comprisesreceiving a definition of service attribute information corresponding toa base service for each of a plurality of base services, wherein eachbase service is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentationto a device, and receiving a customized definition to apply to at leastone of the plurality of service attribute information. The methodfurther comprises providing a plurality of channel information to thedevice, at least one of the plurality of channel information comprisingthe customized definition. In a related embodiment, at least oneprocessor is configured to perform the above-described actions. Inanother related embodiment, a computer program resident in a computerreadable medium that, when executed, directs a computer device toperform the actions noted above.

In another embodiment, an apparatus for providing content informationcomprises a means for receiving a definition of service attributeinformation corresponding to a base service for each of a plurality ofbase services, wherein each base service is operable to provide at leasta portion of a presentation to a device. The apparatus further comprisesa means for receiving a customized definition of at least one of theplurality of service attribute information. Additionally, the apparatuscomprises a means for providing a plurality of channel information tothe device, at least one of the plurality of channel informationcomprising the customized definition.

In yet another embodiment, an apparatus for providing contentinformation comprises a content server having a first definition ofservice attribute information and a second definition of customattribute information, wherein the service attribute informationcorresponds to a base service operable to provide at least a portion ofa presentation to a device. Additionally, the apparatus comprises agenerator module operable to generate and transmit a system informationmessage having at least one customized channel definition fortransmission to the device, wherein the customized channel definitioncomprises a predetermined combination of at least a portion of the firstdefinition of the service attribute information and a correspondingportion of the second definition of the custom attribute information.

In still another embodiment, a method for presenting content informationcomprises receiving a definition of service attribute informationcorresponding to a base service, wherein the base service is operable toprovide at least a portion of a presentation to a device. The methodfurther comprises receiving a definition of custom attributeinformation. Additionally, the method comprises generating a view ofcustom channel information based on a predetermined combination of thedefined custom attribute information with the defined service attributeinformation. In a related embodiment, at least one processor isconfigured to perform the above-described actions. In another relatedembodiment, a computer program resident in a computer readable mediumthat, when executed, directs a computer device to perform the actionsnoted above.

In a further embodiment, a wireless device comprises a means forreceiving a definition of service attribute information corresponding toa base service, wherein the base service is operable to provide at leasta portion of a presentation to a device. The wireless device furthercomprises a means for receiving a definition of custom attributeinformation. Additionally, the wireless device comprises a means forgenerating a view of custom channel information based on a predeterminedcombination of the defined custom attribute information with the definedservice attribute information.

In another embodiment, a wireless device comprises a computer platformhaving a data repository comprising a first definition and a seconddefinition. The first definition defining service attribute informationcorresponding to a base service operable to provide at least a portionof a presentation, and the second definition defining custom attributeinformation. Additionally, the wireless device comprises a media managermodule on the computer platform and operable to initiate generation of aview of custom channel information based on a predetermined combinationof the defined custom attribute information with the defined serviceattribute information.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a system fordelivering customized content and channel information;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a system informationmessage transported by the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a media presentationguide (MPG) block record that may comprise a portion of the systeminformation message of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of various components ofa media program guide (MPG), including the MPG block of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a screen shot of one embodiment of a MPG constructed from thecomponents of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an MPG title recordassociated with the MPG block of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a rating recordassociated with the MPG title record of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an MPG title languagespecific data record associated with the MPG title record of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a real-timepresentation record associated with the MPG title record of FIG. 6;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a non real-timepresentation record associated with the MPG title record of FIG. 6;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a datacastpresentation record associated with the MPG title record of FIG. 6;

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a contact windowrecord associated with the MPG block record of FIG. 3;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a channelcustomization record associated with the MPG block record of FIG. 3;

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an MPG titlecustomization record associated with the channel customization record ofFIG. 13;

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a datacastpresentation record associated with the MPG title customization recordof FIG. 14;

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of an auxiliarypresentation record associated with the channel customization record ofFIG. 13;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a blackout recordassociated with the MPG block record of FIG. 3;

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of data and recordsstored by content server 60 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of functionalcomponents of the wireless device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of functionalcomponents of the media distribution system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 21 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a method for providingcontent information; and

FIG. 22 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a method for displayingcontent information.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description describes one or more embodiments ofa content delivery system. The system is especially well suited for usein wireless network environments, but may be used in any type of networkenvironment, including but not limited to, communication networks,public networks, such as the Internet, private networks, such as virtualprivate networks (VPN), local area networks, wide area networks, longhaul networks, or any other type of data or communication network.

Referring to FIG. 1, one embodiment of a system 10 for providingcustomized content and channel information includes a media distributionsystem (“MDS”) 12 that operates to receive media segments 14, which forma plurality of base services 16 or common channels, from a plurality ofcontent providers 18. Further, for each of the plurality of baseservices 16, MDS 12 includes service attribute information 20 or commonchannel information, which defines and describes the corresponding baseservice. Additionally, MDS 12 receives custom attribute information 22from each of a plurality of content retailers 24. Custom attributeinformation 22 includes content retailer-specific definitions anddescriptions for each of the plurality of base services 16, which in oneembodiment supplement or replace the corresponding service attributeinformation 20. MDS 12 is operable to generate a customized view of eachbase service 16 for each content retailer 24 by replacing serviceattribute information 20 with custom attribute information 22. Thesecustomized views of each base service 16 are defined as channels,customized channels or purchase items 26, which are contentretailer-specific due to the customizations and which are available tousers for subscription/purchase. The combination of service attributeinformation 20 and custom attribute information 22 thereby definecustomized channel attribute information 28 for each of the plurality ofchannels 26. Each content retailer 24 or billing and customer serviceprovider (BCS) 30 may then group various combinations of channels 26into tiers 32, and various combinations of tiers 32 into packages 34 tooffer, such as on a subscription basis, to devices associated with thegiven content retailer 24 and/or BCS 30, such as wireless device 36.

In one embodiment, for example, each content retailer 24 and/or BCS 30can provide a customized display of channels 26 on a user interface 38of a subscribed wireless device 36 in the form of a media presentationguide (“MPG”) 40. MPG 40 comprises a schedule of presentations 42 oneach of the plurality of channels 26, where each presentation 42comprises a form of media that includes one or more media segments 14.As will be discussed below in more detail, MPG 40 is constructed basedon media presentation guide title records 80 (FIGS. 3 and 6) and channelcustomization records 84 (FIGS. 3 and 13) associated with eachpresentation 42, 48, base service 16, auxiliary service 50, and/orchannel 26. For example, MPG title records 80 and channel customizationrecords 84 may be part of a system information (SI) message 44 sentwithin a flow 45 from MDS 12 to wireless device 36 via a wireless accessnetwork 46. Flow 45 is a logical stream within a “multiplex,” which is aset of flows for a given area. Each flow 45 is typically used to delivera single media component of a real-time presentation, or a filecontaining a non real-time presentation, or SI messages 44. Thus, eachMPG 40 is customized on each device according to the associated contentretailer 24 and/or BCS 30.

In another embodiment, the customized view includes presentation 42 frombase service 16 in combination with an auxiliary presentation 48 from anauxiliary service 50 displayed on user interface 38. Auxiliarypresentation 48 and auxiliary service 50, which are provided tocustomize and enhance a base service, will be discussed in more detailbelow.

In one embodiment, service attribute information 20 and custom attributeinformation 28 comprise essentially the fields or records, but withdifferent values. Custom attribute information 28, for example, may beretailer-specific information utilized to give the presentation of theservice by the given retailer a unique look and feel. For example, thefields or records associated with either information 20 and/or 28 mayinclude at least one of: a name and a description associated with agiven language; an additional description providing more details thanthe previously-mentioned description; an associated universal resourceidentifier (URI) or universal resource locator (URL) that references asource of more information relating to the service; a type of devicerecommended to receive the service; an icon associated with the type ofdevice; an icon to identify or represent the service; a start time; aduration; a genre; a parental rating; an intro; an outro; anadvertisement; a barker; an Internet Protocol datacast; and any otherattribute or descriptor associated with a service. In particular, thecombination of a given base service 16 with one or more retailer-definedauxiliary presentations 48 and/or auxiliary services 50 provides aunique view of a channel-related information for each retailer.

Thus, system 10 comprises one embodiment of a transport system thatoperates to create and transport multimedia content flows across datanetworks. For example, the transport system is suitable for use intransporting media from a content provider to a media distributionsystem for broadcast distribution. Advantageously, system 10 enablescontent retailers 22 and/or BCS providers 30 to customize base services16 to provide customized channels 26, customized media presentationguides 40, and customized presentations 42 and 48 to subscribed devices.

Any number of devices may be operable with system 10 to receive andplay/display content and content information. Wireless device 36 is onesuch device, and includes devices such as a cellular telephone, apersonal digital assistant, a laptop computer, and any other wirelessdevice operable to receive and play/display media. It should be noted,however, that in one or more embodiments of system 10, virtually anynumber or type of wired or wireless device capable of playing/displayingmedia may be utilized.

In FIG. 1, the components of system 10 may each have a number of definedroles that allow certain functions to be separated from other functions.It should be noted, however, that in any given implementation of system10, any given component or organization may perform multiple roles.

In one embodiment, for example, BCS provider 30 comprises a businessentity that provides the user billing and customer support services onbehalf of one or more content retailers 24. Each device in system 10,such as wireless device 36, is associated with one BCS provider 30, suchas through a subscription agreement 52. As such, BCS provider 30 maysupply subscription data 54 to MDS 12.

Content retailer 24 comprises a business entity that defines packages 34and offers them for subscription through one or more associated BCSproviders 30. Accordingly, each content retailer 24 provides packages 34and the associated packaged data to MDS 12. Further, for example, eachcontent retailer 24 may be associated with one or more BCS providers 30through a content retail agreement 56.

Although content retailer 24 and BCS provider 30 are represented asseparate entities, it is contemplated that they may be combined into asingle entity.

Content provider 18 may comprise a business entity that supplies contentdelivered to the user, such as device 36, through base services 16. Forexample, each content provider 18 supplies media segments 14 and theassociated media data to MDS 12. Each media segment 14 may comprise oneor more of video, audio, multimedia content, clips, real-time and nonreal-time content, a combined and/or simultaneous real-time and non-realtime content, scripts, programs, or any other type of suitable content.Further, for example, each content provider 18 may be associated withone or more content retailers 24 through a content retail agreement 58.

MDS 12 comprises any combination of wired and wireless networks, andassociated computer devices and servers, which operates to distributecontent for delivery to users. MDS 12 may comprise an optimizedbroadcast network designed and optimized to deliver high-quality contentto selected devices over plurality of optimized communication channels.Further, for example, MDS 12 may comprise one or more content servers 60that store the previously mentioned media, data and records, along withthe logic and executable instructions to enable the functionality of MDS12. In one embodiment, for example, content server 60 and/or MDS 12includes a system information (SI) message generator 62 having hardwareand/or software, including memory, executable instructions and aprocessor, operable to generate SI message 44 based on the data withincontent server 60. For example, SI message generator 62 includesgenerator logic for compiling SI message 44 from the data within MDS 12,and transceiver logic for receiving all SI message-related data andsending SI message 44 out of MDS 12 for distribution to devices.Additionally, for example, MDS 12 may include wireless access network 46having a broadcast base station (BBS) 64 that provides a transportinterface to allow MDS 12 to deliver SI message 44 and content in theform of content flows to wireless access network 46 forbroadcast/multicast to devices, such as wireless device 36.

Referring to FIG. 2, SI message 44 comprises a set of information thatenables a device to locate services or subscribe to packages on behalfof the user, and to describe marketplace information 66, serviceinformation 68 and MPG information 70 to the user. Marketplaceinformation 66 includes information describing each BCS provider 30,content retailer 24, package 34, tier 32, and channel 26. Serviceinformation 68 includes information about each base service 16 andauxiliary service 50 available in system 10. MPG information 70 includesinformation about the contents of channels 26.

In one embodiment, referring to FIGS. 2-5, MPG information 70 includesan MPG block message 72 that defines the available content in a fixedperiod of time, referred to as an MPG block duration 74. MPG Blockduration 74 is a configurable parameter, which may be signaled in atransport flow, and which defines a size of the window of time coveredby MPG Block message 72. Information about content which spans theboundary between two consecutive MPG blocks 72 is present in each MPGblock 72. Each MPG block message 72 defines: a start time 76, which isthe earliest time covered by the MPG block and corresponds to the end ofthe interval covered by the previous MPG block, and a version 78 of theMPG block, which the identifies a particular set of attributes andelement values which allows for the identification of an MPG Block; MPGtitle records 80 for all MPG titles, i.e. presentations and theirassociated media presentation guide information, shown during the MPGblock duration, where each MPG title record 80 completely describes allapplicable attributes of an MPG title; contact window information 82 forall non real-time presentations downloaded during the MPG blockduration; channel customization records 84 defining customizedadaptations for each MPG title for respective ones of the variouschannels 26 through which the services 16 may be accessed; and, blackoutinformation 86 defining the region or regions in which the MPG title isto be blacked out. Each of these components of the MPG block message 72will be described in more detail below.

Each MPG 40 is constructed from a predetermined number of MPG Blocks 72,which are relatively ordered based on their respective start times 76.Further, the order of channels 26 listed within each MPG 40 is dictatedbased upon a channel weight 153 associated with each channel 26, wherethe channel weight comprises one of the channel attributes 28. MPG 40displays a name 88 and/or icon 90 for each channel 26, and a name 92and/or icon 94 for each presentation 42 and/or 48. For example, names88, 92 and/or icons 90, 94 may be associated with base service 16 or maybe customized based on custom attributes 22 associated with each contentretailer 24. Additionally, icons 90, 94 respectively associated witheach channel 26 and presentation 42 and/or 48 may indicate apresentation type, such as real time, non real-time, data, or somecombination thereof. Further, MPG 40 displays start times 76 associatedwith presentations 42 and/or 48, and may further include a current date96 as well as one or more functional keys 98. For example, functionalkeys 98 may include a “Watch” key to initiate watching a highlightedpresentation, and an “Options” key to allow a user to access additionalinformation, such as information about the respective service, channel,presentation, or a subscription to a service, presentation, channel orpackage.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 6, in one embodiment MPG title record 80includes an MPG title start time 100 and an MPG title duration 102. MPGtitle start time 100 is the time at which presentation of the contentcovered by the MPG title can begin. If the service is a real-timeservice or an IP datacast service, then MPG title start time 100 is thetime at which the live display of the content shall commence, exclusiveof any “intros,” or introductory presentations or media segments,associated with the MPG title. If the service is a non real-timeservice, MPG title start time 100 is the earliest time at which displayof the content may commence, which could be as early as when the nonreal-time service is stored to device memory, exclusive of any “intros”associated with the MPG title. If the service is a combined real-timeand non real-time service, known as a “per MPG title” service, then thesignificance of MPG title start time 100 is dependent on the nature ofthe content associated with the MPG title, as defined in the precedingtwo sentences.

Similarly, MPG title duration 102 depends on the type of service. If theservice is a real-time service or an IP datacast service, then MPG titleduration 102 added to MPG title start time 100 is the time at whichdisplay of the content shall end, inclusive of any “outros,” which is anadditional presentation that follows the main presentation, associatedwith the MPG title. If the service is a non real-time service, then MPGtitle duration 102 added to MPG title start time 100 is the latest timeat which display of the content may commence, exclusive of any “intros”associated with the MPG title. If the service is a “per MPG titleservice,” then the significance of MPG title duration 102 is dependenton the nature of the content associated with the MPG title, as definedin the proceeding to sentences. As such, MPG title duration 102 relatesto actual viewing time for real time content and the available tocommence viewing time for non real-time content, and comprises thewindow of time across which the MPG title name is displayed on MPG 40.

In this embodiment, MPG title record 80 may further include a servicereference 104 and a genre 106. Service reference 104 includes a serviceidentification, which identifies the base service 16 associated with theMPG title. Genre 106 is an attribute that describes the semantic classof content provided by the MPG title, such as comedy, documentary,drama, mystery, etc.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, MPG title record 80 may further include oneor more ratings 108 for the MPG title. Rating 108 defines a parentaladvisory rating value for the MPG title, which may be provided alongwith the content by content provider 18. In one embodiment, for example,rating 108 may include a rating region 110 and corresponding additionalrating information 112, such as a rating dimension 114 and a ratingvalue 116. Rating region 110 specifies the geographical region in whichrating 108 applies. There may be a separate rating 108 for each ratingregion 110 in which the associated base service 16 is offered. Ratingdimension 114 identifies an aspect of the rating system that applies tothe associated rating it region 110. For example, in the United StatesRegion rating scheme, rating dimension 114 may be a description such as“violence,” “language,” etc. In other regions, rating dimension 114 mayrepresent different descriptions. Rating value 116 specifies a valueassociated with the corresponding rating dimension 114, and therebyhelps to quantify and compare relative ratings.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 8, MPG title record 80 may further include oneor more MPG title language specific data records 118. Each MPG titlelanguage specific data record 118 specifies a title name 120 and a titledescription 122 of the MPG title associated with a specific language124. Title name 120 is an attribute that specifies a name for the MPGtitle that may be displayed to the user. Similarly, title description122 is an attribute that specifies a description for the MPG title thatmay be displayed to the user. Further, each MPG title language specificdata record 118 may provide additional description 125 and define one ormore universal resource locator (URL) records 126 where a subscribeduser can obtain further information about the MPG title. Additionaldescription 125 is an attribute that specifies an additional descriptionrelating to the MPG title that may be displayed to the user, includingmore details about the title and additional URLs where furtherinformation may be found.

There may be one more MPG title URL records 126 per language 124 andeach URL record 126 may specify a subscribed URL 128, which may includea URL link 130 and a URL description 132 associated with the URL link.Further each URL record 126 may include one or more device class records134 that indicate the particular type of device required to access theassociated URL. Each device class record 134 may include a softwareclass record 136 that specifies the type of operating system environmentappropriate for the URL, such as the Palm OS® operating system forhandheld computers. Similarly, each device class record 134 may includea hardware class record 138 that specifies the type of deviceappropriate for the URLs, such as a personal digital assistant (PDA)device. Further, each device class record 134 may include a device classicon 140, which may include a graphic file or an icon URL reference 142that provides access to a graphic file that may be used as an icon. IconURL reference 142 identifies a resource which provides an icon image forthe corresponding channel 26 which is appropriate for the given deviceclass 134. The URL may point to an external reference, such as an HTMLlink, or to an internal file. Further, device class icon 140 may includean x-location reference 144 and a y-location reference 146, which areunsigned integers respectively specifying the horizontal and verticallocation of the icon on the device class 134.

Referring back to FIG. 6, MPG title record 80 may further include adescription of the presentation associated with the MPG title, such as areal-time presentation 148, a non real-time presentation 150, and one ormore datacast presentations 152

Referring to FIG. 9, real-time presentation 148 may define apresentation reference 154 and optional presentation identificationinformation for media tracking, such as one or more of an InternationalStandard Audiovisual Number (ISAN) reference 156 and a Content ReferenceIDentifier (CRID) reference 158. Presentation reference 154 defines apresentation identifier that uniquely distinguishes the presentationfrom all other presentations on system 10. ISAN reference 156 is theInternational Standard Audiovisual Number (ISAN), which may include aroot 160 and/or a version 162, as specified in the joint InternationalOrganization for Standardization-International ElectrotechnicalCommission (ISO-IEC) standard number 15706, Information anddocumentation—International Standard Audiovisual Number (ISAN), 2002,hereby incorporated by reference. Similarly, CRID reference 158 is theContent Reference IDentifier (CRID) as specified in Request For Comment(RFC) number 4078, Earnshow, Nigel; Aoki, Shigeru; Ashley, Alex;Kameyama, Wateru, The TV-Anytime Content Reference Identifier, 2005,hereby incorporated by reference.

Referring to FIG. 10, non real-time presentation 150 may include apresentation reference 154, which identifies the given presentation, andpresentation duration 164, which specifies the amount of time needed toview the non real-time presentation. Non real-time presentations arefiles which have been downloaded to the device, such as wireless device36, before presentation to the user. The times at which the files aredownloaded are advertised in advance through MPG 40 in one or morecontact windows. Each contact window represents a timeframe withinwhich, at any time, the device can initiate acquisition of the file.

In one embodiment, for example, content retailer 24 and/or BCS provider30 may limit viewing of the presentation to a specified presentationwindow, which is specified in MPG 40 as a start time, i.e. MPG titlestart time 100, and a duration, i.e. MPG title duration 102, exactly asfor a real-time presentation. However, in this case, the start and endtimes indicate the earliest and latest times that the user may begin toview the presentation. Unlike a real-time presentation, viewing cancommence at any time within the presentation window. If the duration ofthe presentation is shorter than the presentation window, then the usermay elect to view the presentation multiple times within thepresentation window.

As a result of these characteristics, activity related to thedistribution and viewing of the presentation may continue after therespective ends of the contact windows and the presentation windows. Adevice that initiates acquisition at the end of the contact window canstill complete acquisition of the file. In order to allow the device todetermine when an acquisition attempt has failed in this case, thedefinition of the contact window in MPG 40 also includes the contactduration attribute. For this reason, the end of the contact window maybe separated from the start time of the presentation by at least thelength of the contact duration.

Similarly, if a user elects to view a presentation at the end of thepresentation window, the presentation can be viewed to its end, asdetermined by the duration of the presentation.

Referring to FIG. 11, datacast presentation 152 defines an InternetProtocol (IP) address 166, an IP port 168, and one or more MultipurposeInternet Mail Extensions (MIME) types 170 for the IP datacastpresentation. For example, IP address 166 may be an IPv4 or an IPv6multicast address, and IP port 168 may be an IPv4 or an IPv6 port. MIMEtype 170 defines the type of media offered over the IP multicast addressin the presentation.

Referring to FIG. 12, contact window 82 represents an interval of timeduring which a non real-time presentation, or an auxiliary presentationwith non real-time content, is being transmitted. Each such presentationmay be preceded by at least one contact window 82 for the presentation.In one embodiment, for example, contact window 82 includes presentationreference 154 that identifies the presentation associated with a contactwindow start time 172, a contact window end time 174 and a contactduration 176. Contact window start time 172 is a time at whichtransmission of the presentation commences. Contact window end time 174is the latest time which a device can begin to acquire the presentation.Contact window duration 176 may be used by the device to determinewhether a download is successful.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 13, channel customization record 84 defines oneor more MPG title customization records 180 for a particular channel 26,as defined by a channel reference 178 and as offered by a contentretailer 24, which are associated with a base service 16 represented bythe MPG title. Channel reference 178 comprises a channel identifier fora channel 26 that is customized by channel customization record 84. Inother words, channel reference 178 identifies a channel record, storedwithin content server 60, which identifies attributes for the givenchannel, including: a unique channel identifier; a validity time thatdetermines when the channel record is valid; a channel weight 153(FIG. 1) that determines an order of the channel versus other channelsin a list, i.e. where a channel with a lower weight is listed prior to achannel with a higher weight; channel language specific data whichprovides a channel name, description, and associated URL for one or moregiven languages associated with the channel; a base service referencethat identifies a base service record, stored in content server 60,which provides the attributes of the given base service being customizedand presented as the given channel; channel-specific auxiliary servicereferences that identify auxiliary services 50 associated with thechannel; and a channel icon, which may be a resident file or a referenceto a file having a graphic content, for display on MPG 40. Further, ifthe service is an auxiliary service 50, channel customization record 84may also specify the available content, such as an auxiliarypresentation record 182, for the auxiliary service 50 associated withthe MPG title for a particular channel 26.

Referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, in one embodiment, each MPG titlecustomization record 180 may specify a list of MPG customizationelements. Each MPG customization element causes one or more of theelements of MPG title language specific data 118 (FIG. 6) to beoverridden when the MPG title is accessed by the user through therespective channel 26 associated with the respective content retailer24. In one embodiment, each MPG title customization record 180 includesa start time 184 which is a time having a value equal to thecorresponding MPG title start time 100 (FIG. 6) associated with the MPGtitle customized by the respective MPG title customization record 180.Further, each MPG title customization record 180 may include a showintro indicator 186 and a show outro indicator 188, which respectivelyindicate if the device shall introduce and/or follow the presentationwith an intro and/or an outro, described in detail below, obtained fromthe respective auxiliary service 50 associated with the respectivechannel 26.

Additionally, each MPG title customization record 180 may include one ormore MPG language specific data records 190 and one or more datacastpresentation records 192. Each MPG language specific data record 190 mayspecify an MPG title name 194 and an MPG title description 196associated with a given language 124, and may further provide customizedadditional description 198 and define customized URL records 200 where auser can obtain further information about the MPG title, superseding thecorresponding name 120, description 122, additional description 125 andURL records 126 associated with the corresponding MPG title languagespecific data 118 (FIG. 6) for the same language 124. As such,customized additional description 198 may comprise a customizedadditional description and a customized URL description, and customizedURL records 200 may include one or more subscribed URLs 202 suitable forpresentation to a user who is subscribed to the respective channel 26.Subscribed URLs 202 may include a URL 204 that points to an internalfile or external reference, as well as a corresponding URL description206 that describes the resource accessed by URL 204. Further, MPGlanguage specific data record 190 may further include a customized dataclass record 208, which has customized components that supersedes thecomponents of data class record 134 (FIG. 8).

Referring to FIGS. 14 and 15, each datacast presentation record 192 mayspecify one or more datacast presentation elements, which replace theelements of the IP datacast presentation record 152 (FIGS. 6 and 11)associated with the respective base service 16 when the base service isaccessed through the respective channel 26. Each datacast presentationrecord 192 may define an IP address 210, an IP port 212 and a MIME type214, each being a customized version that replaces the correspondingbase versions previously discussed in FIGS. 6 and 11.

Referring to FIGS. 13 and 16, if the service is an auxiliary service 50,then the channel customization record 84 may specify one or moreauxiliary presentation records 182. Each auxiliary presentation record182 defines an auxiliary presentation 48, such as by referencing apresentation identification 154, and may further define a presentationduration 164, which is currently valid for the respective auxiliaryservice 50. Further, each auxiliary presentation record 182 may includeat least one of an intro 216, an outro 218, an advertisement 220, abarker 222, a URL 224, and one or more IP datacasts 226.

In one embodiment, intro 216 includes content provided by auxiliarypresentation 182 that is presented to the user ahead of contentassociated with the MPG title. Outro 218 includes content provided byauxiliary presentation 182 that is presented to the user behind contentassociated with the MPG title. Advertisement 220 includes contentprovided by auxiliary presentation 182 that is presented to the userduring the presentation of content associated with the MPG title. Barker222 includes content provided by auxiliary presentation 182 that may bepresented to users who attempt to access the MPG title of a givenchannel 26 when they are not subscribed to that channel. URL 224includes content, such as URL information, provided by auxiliarypresentation 182 that is processed and presented to the userconcurrently with a presentation of content associated with the MPGtitle. Further, each IP datacast 226 includes content provided byauxiliary presentation 182 that is processed and presented to the userconcurrently with presentation of the content associated with the MPGtitle. Further, each IP datacast 226 may identify an IP address 228, aport 230, and one or more MIME types 232, each as previously described,associated with auxiliary presentation 182.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 17, MPG block 72 may further include one ormore blackout records 86 for any or all MPG title records 80 associatedwith real-time presentations in MPG Block 72. Each blackout record 86identifies the respective base service 16 that is to be blacked out,such as by including a service identification 104 corresponding to theservice. Further, each blackout record 86 identifies a start time 234,which corresponds with MPG title start time 100 (FIG. 6) of therespective MPG title record 80 that is blacked out through the givenblackout record 86. Additionally, each blackout record 86 include ablackout location 236, which is a geographic location in which theassociated MPG title record 80 is blacked out. In one embodiment, forexample, blackout location 236 includes one or more local-area groupingof infrastructure (LOI) identifiers 238 and/or one or more wide-areagrouping of infrastructure (WOI) identifiers 240. Each LOI identifier238 identifies a logical grouping of the infrastructure deployed toprovide MDS 12 with network coverage in a specific local area. Each WOIidentifier 240 identifies a logical grouping of the infrastructuredeployed to provide MDS 12 with network coverage in a specific widearea. A “multiplex” defines the set of flows available in a given LOI orWOI.

Referring to FIG. 18, the previously mentioned one or more contentservers 60 therefore store the above-defined MPG block message records72 as MPG information 70, along with marketplace-content retailerinformation 66 and associated records 242, service information 68 andassociated records 244, and content 246, which includes media segments14 and/or presentations 42, 48.

In one embodiment, each marketplace-content retailer record 242includes: a unique marketplace-content retailer identification; basicinformation about the marketplace-content retailer, such as a name; oneor more package records that identify the packages associated with themarketplace-content retailer, including the package name, descriptionand language, the package pricing, a reference to one or more tiers 32associated with each package, a package characteristic, for example,identifying the package as a parent package, an autosubscribe package, aclosed package or an excluded package an identifier of an associated BCSprovider 30, an identification of one or more associated auxiliaryservices 50 associated with the package, and an identification ofavailable areas associated with the package, such as one or more LOIand/or WOI identifiers; one or more tier records associated with themarketplace-content retailer, including tier identifiers and one or morechannel references and/or auxiliary service references associated withthe tier; one or more channel records associated with themarketplace-content retailer, including channel identifiers, channelweights, channel language specific data, channel base service referencesthat identify the base service associated with the channel, channelauxiliary service references that identify one or more auxiliaryservices associated with the channel, and a channel icon; one or moreauxiliary service references that identify an auxiliary serviceassociated with the marketplace-content retailer; and an end userlicense agreement (EULA) reference that defines terms for accessing theEULA associated with the content retailer.

Further, in one embodiment, each service record 244 includes informationabout one or more base services 16 and/or auxiliary services 50associated with each marketplace-content retailer record 242. Forexample, in one embodiment, each base service record may include one ormore of: a service identifier; a validity time, which defines when therecord becomes active; a corporate affiliation of the service; anabbreviated name for the service; a genre associated with the service; adefault language associated with the service; an identification of aservice type, e.g. real-time, non real-time, per MPG title, datacast;one or more service language specific data records that define languagespecific attributes associated with the service (i.e. this is theservice level equivalent to MPG title language specific data 118 (FIG.8)); capability requirements associated with the service, e.g.memory/storage requirements; a rating associated with the service; anavailable area associated with the service, such as one or more LOIand/or WOI areas; one or more flow records associated with the servicewhich defines the attributes of the given flow used to transport acomponent of the service; and one or more service icons associated withthe service.

Thus, referring to FIGS. 1 and 18, marketplace-content retailer records242 comprise the data and information associated with the respectivepackages 34, tiers 32, and channels 26 of each content retailer 24and/or BCS provider 30 of system 10. Service records 244 comprise thedata and information associated with the respective base services 16 andauxiliary services 50 of system 10. Further, MPG block message records72 comprise the data and information associated with the specificpresentations and services associated with each channel 26 associatedwith each content retailer 24 and/or BCS provider 30.

Referring to FIG. 19, in one embodiment, wireless device 36 has inputmechanism 246 for generating inputs into wireless device, and outputmechanism 248 for generating information for consumption by the user ofthe wireless device. For example, input mechanism 246 may include amechanism such as a key or keyboard, a mouse, a touch-screen display,voice recognition module, etc. Further, for example, output mechanism248 may include user interface 38, which may be a display, an audiospeaker, a haptic feedback mechanism, etc.

Further, wireless device 36 has computer platform 250 that can transmitdata across wireless network 46, and that can receive and executesoftware applications and display data transmitted from MDS 12 oranother computer device connected to wireless network 46. Computerplatform 250 includes a data repository 252, which may comprise volatileand nonvolatile memory such as read-only and/or random-access memory(RAM and ROM), EPROM, EEPROM, flash cards, or any memory common tocomputer platforms. Further, data repository 252 may include one or moreflash memory cells, or may be any secondary or tertiary storage device,such as magnetic media, optical media, tape, or soft or hard disk.

Further, computer platform 250 also includes a processing engine 254,which may be an application-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), orother chipset, processor, logic circuit, or other data processingdevice. Processing engine 254 or other processor such as ASIC mayexecute an application programming interface (“API”) layer 256 thatinterfaces with any resident programs, such as a media manager module258, in data repository 252 of the wireless device. API 256 is a runtimeenvironment executing on the respective wireless device. One suchruntime environment is Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless® (BREW®)software developed by Qualcomm, Inc., of San Diego, Calif. Other runtimeenvironments may be utilized that, for example, operate to control theexecution of applications on wireless computing devices.

Processing engine 254 includes various processing subsystems 260embodied in hardware, firmware, software, and combinations thereof, thatenable the functionality of wireless device 36 and the operability ofthe wireless device on wireless access network 46. For example,processing subsystems 260 allow for initiating and maintainingcommunications, exchanging data, and executing multimedia presentations.In one embodiment, such as in a cellular telephone, processing engine254 may include one or a combination of processing subsystems 260, suchas: sound, non-volatile memory, file system, transmit, receive,searcher, layer 1, layer 2, layer 3, main control, remote procedure,handset, power management, diagnostic, digital signal processor,vocoder, messaging, call manager, Bluetooth® system, Bluetooth® LPOS,position determination, position engine, user interface, sleep, dataservices, security, authentication, USIM/SIM, voice services, graphics,USB, multimedia such as MPEG, GPRS, etc. For the disclosed embodiments,processing subsystems 260 of processing engine 256 may include anysubsystem components that interact with applications executing oncomputer platform 250. For example, processing subsystems 260 mayinclude any subsystem components which receive data reads and datawrites from API 256 on behalf of media manager module 258.

Computer platform 250 may further include a communications module 262embodied in hardware, firmware, software, and combinations thereof, thatenables communications among the various components of the wirelessdevice 36, as well as between wireless device 36 and wireless accessnetwork 46. For example, communications module 262 may include atransceiver module for wireless communications with MDS 12 and/orwireless access network 46.

Media manager module 258 operates to manage media subscription, mediareceipts, and media playing/viewing activities on wireless device 36.Media manager module 258 may include any hardware, software, firmwareand/or other set of executable instructions operable to manage themedia-related activities on wireless device 36. Further, media managermodule 258 and/or data repository 252 store SI message 44 and itsassociated content information and the content for viewing/playing onuser interface 38. In one embodiment, media manager module 258 includesmedia management logic 264 that provides the capability to receive,store, provide access to and play/display media-related information onwireless device 36. For example, media management logic 264 operates toparse SI message 44 and display MPG 40 on user interface 38 and/orprovide a view of a channel 26, including presenting real-time andnon-real-time content. Similarly, media management logic 264 operates tomanage subscriptions to packages 34 with content retailers 24 and/or BCSproviders 30, and store the associated subscription information 51. Forexample, subscription information 51 may be any information, such as acontent retailer identification, a package identification, keys, etc.,stored on device 36 relating to subscriptions to or activations onwireless networks and/or subscriptions to multimedia packages 34.Further, media management logic 264 operates to manage the acquisitionand storage, including memory management functions, associated with anon real-time presentation based on the respective contact window, aswell as managing the playing/displaying of the content. Additionally,media management logic 264 operates with communications module 262 toreceive and play real-time presentations and datacast presentations.

For example, in one embodiment, device 36 may subscribe to or beactivated on wireless access network 46. Typically, an activation ofdevice 36 onto network 46 limits the device to receiving communicationsand/or multimedia service from one content retailer 24 and/or BCSprovider 30. Further, this activation allows device 36 to receive abroadcast including SI message 44 (FIG. 1), even if the device is notsubscribed to any packages 34. Because of being broadcast, in oneembodiment, SI message 44 includes all of the MPG block records 72defined by all of the content retailers. Further, in this case, SImessage 44 and/or its corresponding flow 45 may include all of thecontent for a given schedule of programming, i.e. all of the baseservices and base service presentations and all of the auxiliaryservices and auxiliary presentations. In this example, upon receiving SImessage 44, media manager module 258 is operable to filter out allrecords and/or content not relevant to the device based on thecontent-retailer associated with the device, and further based on thepackages subscribed to by the device. In this manner, media managermodule 258 constructs retailer-specific, customized versions of MPG 40,and/or a subscription menu, and/or custom generation of combinedpresentations 42 and 48 on device 36, and optimizes review of SI message44 and/or content in flow 45 by only addressing records and/or contentrelevant to the device.

Referring to FIG. 20, in one embodiment, MDS 12 may comprise at leastone of any type of hardware, software, firmware, server, personalcomputer, mini computer, mainframe computer, or any computing deviceeither special purpose or general computing device. Further, there canbe separate servers or computer devices and/or networks associated withMDS 12 that work in concert to receive, manipulate and provide data inusable formats to parties, and/or to provide a separate layer of controlin the data flow between devices and networks and MDS 12.

MDS 12 has input mechanism 266 for generating inputs into MDS 12, andoutput mechanism 268 for generating information for consumption by anoperator of MDS 12. For example, input mechanism 266 may include amechanism such as a key or keyboard, a mouse, a touch-screen display,voice recognition module, etc. Further, for example, output mechanism268 may be a display, an audio speaker, a haptic feedback mechanism,etc. Additionally, input mechanism 266 may be a remote device, such as aremote computer or workstation, which has access to MDS 12. In oneembodiment, for example, input mechanism 266 may be utilized by anoperator to enter service attributes 20, custom attributes 28, and forestablishing and/or manipulating information associated withpresentations 42, 48, channels 26, tiers 32 and packages 34.

Further, MDS 12 has one or a plurality of resident or distributedcomputer platforms 270 that can receive and transmit data, and that canreceive and execute software applications and display data. Computerplatform 270 includes a data repository 272, which may comprise volatileand nonvolatile memory such as read-only and/or random-access memory(RAM and ROM), EPROM, EEPROM, flash cards, or any memory common tocomputer platforms. Further, data repository 272 may include one or moreflash memory cells, or may be any secondary or tertiary storage device,such as magnetic media, optical media, tape, or soft or hard disk. Inone embodiment, for example, data repository 272 includes the one ormore content servers 60.

Further, computer platform 270 also includes a processing engine 274,which may be an application-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), orother chipset, processor, logic circuit, or other data processing devicefor carrying out executable instructions.

Computer platform 270 may further include a communications module 276embodied in hardware, firmware, software, and combinations thereof, thatenables communications among the various components of MDS 12, as wellas between MDS 12 and wireless device 36. For example, communicationsmodule 276 includes wireless access network 46.

Further, a subscription/distribution manager module 278 resides oncomputer platform 270 which operates to manage all of the mediadistribution functions described herein performed by MDS 12.Subscription/distribution manager module 278 may include any hardware,software, firmware and/or other set of executable instructions operableto manage the media-related activities on MDS 12. Further, in oneembodiment, subscription/distribution manager module 278 includessubscription/distribution management logic 280 that provides MDS 12 withthe capability to receive, store, manipulate, provide access to anddistribute content and content-related information. For example,subscription/distribution management logic 280 operates to receivecontent and content-related information, as well as contentretailer-specific information, such as customization information,auxiliary services, auxiliary presentations, channel information, tierinformation and package information. Further, subscription/distributionmanagement logic 280 is operable to receive, process and transmitsubscription related information, such as subscription requests, thecorresponding approvals or denials, and the management of digital rightsbased on an approved subscription request. Additionally,subscription/distribution manager module 278 may include SI generator62, discussed above.

In operation, referring to FIG. 21, one embodiment of a method ofproviding content information comprises receiving a definition ofservice attribute information corresponding to a base service (Block290). For example, in one embodiment, MDS 12 may receive serviceattribute information 20, such as from a content provider 18, a contentretailer 24 and/or a BCS provider 30. Additionally, for example, serviceattribute information 20 may be defined within service information 68(FIG. 2) of SI message 44, and as identified for each MPG title record80 (FIG. 6) by service reference 104. Further, for example, the baseservice may comprise base service 16, including one or morepresentations 42 formed from one or more media segments 14, which isoperable to provide at least a portion of a presentation to a device.

Further, the method includes receiving a customized definition to applyto the service attribute information (Block 292). For example, in oneembodiment, each content retailer 24 provides custom attributes 22 thatsupersede corresponding ones of the service attributes 20 on a serviceby service basis, thereby defining channels 26 that are specificallycustomized for each content retailer 24. Further, for example, customattributes 22 may include presentations, such as intros, outros,advertisements, barkers, URLs and datacasts, from an auxiliary service50 that may be combined with a base service 16 to define acontent-retailer-specific channel 26. Additionally, for example, customattributes 20 may replace service attributes 20 on a per presentationbasis, as well as on a per channel basis. In one embodiment, forexample, the customized definitions may be provided by channelcustomization record 84 (FIGS. 3 and 13), MPG title customization record180 (FIGS. 13 and 14) and auxiliary presentation record 182 (FIGS. 13and 16).

Additionally, the method includes providing a plurality of channelinformation to a device, where at least one of the plurality of channelinformation comprises the customized definition (Block 294). Forexample, in one embodiment, the channel information comprises thecustomized service attribute information. Further, for example, MDS 12may send SI message 44 through wireless access network 46 and towireless device 36. SI message 44 includes marketplace-content retailerinformation 66, service information 68 and MPG information 70 that maybe utilized by wireless device 36 to generate a MPG 40 displaying acustomized list of channels 26, and/or to view customized content, suchas presentation 42 and/or 48 on a respective customized channel 26. Inother words, in this embodiment, SI message 44 includes theretailer-specific customized definitions that are filtered by the devicebased on an associated retailer, thereby allowing the device to presentthe retailer-specific, customized information.

Referring to FIG. 22, in another embodiment, a method for displayingcontent information comprises receiving a definition of serviceattribute information corresponding to a base service (Block 300). Inone embodiment, for example, wireless device 36 receives SI message 44from MDS 12 via wireless access network 46. SI message 44 includesservice information 68, which includes service attributes 20. Further,for example, the service attributes 20 are related to a base service 16,which includes one or more presentations 42 formed from one or moremedia segments 14, which is operable to provide at least a portion of apresentation to a device. Additionally, for example, service attributeinformation 20 may be defined within service information 68 (FIG. 2) ofSI message 44, and as identified for each MPG title record 80 (FIG. 6)by service reference 104.

Further, the method includes receiving a definition of custom attributeinformation (Block 302). For example, in one embodiment, wireless device36 receives SI message 44 from MDS 12 via wireless access network 46. SImessage 44 includes marketplace-content retailer information 66 and MPGinformation 70, either or both of which include custom attributes 28. Inthis case, custom attributes 28 reflect specific informationcorresponding each content retailer 24 and/or BCS provider 30 designedto customize a respective channel 26. Further, for example, thecustomized definitions may be provided by channel customization record84 (FIGS. 3 and 13), MPG title customization record 180 (FIGS. 13 and14) and auxiliary presentation record 182 (FIGS. 13 and 16).

Additionally, the method further includes generating a view of customchannel information based on a predetermined combination of the customattribute information and the service attribute information (Block 304).For example, in one embodiment, media manager module 258 of wirelessdevice 36 operates on SI message 44 to construct custom channelinformation based on replacing at least a portion of service attributes20 with a corresponding portion of custom attributes 28. In particular,media manager module 258 replaces service information 68 withmarketplace-content retailer information 66 and/or MPG information 70.As a result, media manager module 258 generates a user interface 38 thatincludes at least one of: a MPG 40 providing an ordered list ofcustomized channels 26 specific for each content retailer 24; and, apresentation 42 provided by a base service 16, where the presentationmay be supplemented with an auxiliary presentation 48 from an auxiliaryservice 50 based on content-retailer-specific custom attributes 28.

Thus, the described embodiments allow each of a plurality of contentretailers 24 and/or BCS providers 30 to provide a customized view of abase service 16, including a customized media presentation guide 40 andcustomized presentations 42, 48, to devices, such as wireless device 36,subscribed to packages 34 provided by the corresponding content retailer24 and/or BCS provider 30.

Additionally, it should be noted that the information contained in MPGblock 72 (FIG. 2) may also be utilized to construct a customsubscription menu from which a user may review package information andsubscribe to packages. For example, the information relating to thepackages being offered for subscription may be based on servicereferences 104 (FIG. 6) associated with MPG title records 80 (FIG. 6) ofthe given content retailer 24.

In summary, in the present system, all of the channel attributes arecustomizable per content retailer. Channels may have associated weightsthat can be used to order the presentation of the services in the guide.Further, the weights can also be used to determine the priority ofmemory management on the device for each service. As such, the describedchannels allow re-definitions of service information, such as the nameand description of the service, in multiple languages. Additionally,URLs can also be associated with each language to allow the user to getadditional information about the service. Each channel defines a baseservice which is the service it is customizing, and may include anindicator as to whether that channel may be excluded from the guide bythe subscriber. Channels also can have associated auxiliary servicesthat can deliver content specific to the content retailer such asadvertisements, URLs, barkers, supplementary content, etc. The devicecan use the data from the auxiliary services to complement the baseservice information. An example would be providing statistics for abaseball game being shown along with the presentation from the baseservice. Auxiliary services can also provide: content that is played atthe beginning or end of a presentation provided by the base service;content that is played as a promotion for an unsubscribed channel;and/or an advertisement for merchandise or upcoming programs.

While the foregoing disclosure shows illustrative embodiments, it shouldbe noted that various changes and modifications could be made hereinwithout departing from the scope of the described embodiments as definedby the appended claims. Furthermore, although elements of the describedembodiments may be described or claimed in the singular, the plural iscontemplated unless limitation to the singular is explicitly stated.

1. A method for providing content information, comprising: receiving adefinition of a plurality of service attribute information eachcorresponding to one of a plurality of base services, wherein each baseservice is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentation to adevice; receiving a customized definition of attributes to apply to atleast one of the plurality of service attribute information; andproviding a plurality of channel information to the device, at least oneof the plurality of channel information comprising the customizeddefinition.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the customizeddefinition further comprises receiving a customized definitionassociated with each one of a plurality of retailers operable to provideto the device the base service corresponding to the customizeddefinition.
 3. The method of claim 2, wherein receiving the customizeddefinition further comprises receiving a customized definition for eachof the plurality of service attribute information receivable by thedevice from at least a respective one of the plurality of retailers. 4.The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the customized definitionfurther comprises receiving a definition that directs at least a portionof each of the plurality of service attribute information forreplacement by a corresponding portion of a plurality of customattribute information.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving acustomized definition further comprises receiving a definitionidentifying a custom one of at least one of a channel icon, a channelweight, a name of the presentation, a description of the presentation, areference to additional information about the presentation, adescription of the reference to additional information, a ratingassociated with the presentation, and an indication of a type of devicerequired to access the reference to additional information.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, wherein receiving a customized definition of theservice attribute information comprises receiving a definition thatidentifies a custom datacast presentation element associated with thepresentation.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving a customizeddefinition further comprises receiving a definition that associates thebase service corresponding to the customized service attributeinformation with an auxiliary service that provides auxiliarypresentations to supplement the base service.
 8. The method of claim 7,wherein receiving a customized definition further comprising identifyingat least one of an intro, an outro, an advertisement, a barker, auniversal resource locator (URL), and a datacast presentation tosupplement the base service.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein receivinga customized definition further comprises identifying a custom one of atleast one of an indicator that determines if the presentationcorresponding to the customized service attribute information comprisesan auxiliary presentation, and an identification of the auxiliarypresentation associated with the presentation corresponding to thecustomized service attribute information.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein receiving a customized definition further comprises receiving acustomized definition that customizes the service attribute informationfor each one of a plurality of content retailers, wherein apredetermined one of the plurality of content retailers is operable toprovide the presentation to the device, and wherein providing furthercomprises providing the customized channel information corresponding tothe predetermined content retailer to the device.
 11. The method ofclaim 1, wherein providing further comprises providing a mediapresentation guide to the device based on the received customizeddefinition.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein providing furthercomprises providing a customized presentation to the device based on thereceived customized definition.
 13. The method of claim 1, whereinreceiving the definition of service attribute information correspondingto a base service further comprises receiving a definition ofpresentation-specific service attribute information for at least one ofa plurality of presentations, and wherein receiving a customizeddefinition of the service attribute information further comprisesreceiving a customized definition of the presentation-specific serviceattribute information for at least the one presentation.
 14. A computerprogram resident in a computer readable medium that, when executed,directs a computer device to perform the actions of: receiving adefinition of service attribute information corresponding to a baseservice for each of a plurality of base services, wherein each baseservice is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentation to adevice; receiving a customized definition of at least one of theplurality of service attribute information; and providing a plurality ofchannel information to the device, at least one of the plurality ofchannel information comprising the customized definition.
 15. At leastone processor configured to perform the actions of: receiving adefinition of a plurality of service attribute information eachcorresponding to one of a plurality of base services, wherein each baseservice is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentation to adevice; receiving a customized definition of at least one of theplurality of service attribute information; and providing a plurality ofchannel information to the device, at least one of the plurality ofchannel information comprising the customized definition.
 16. Anapparatus for providing content information, comprising: means forreceiving a definition of a plurality of service attribute informationeach corresponding to one of a plurality of base services, wherein eachbase service is operable to provide at least a portion of a presentationto a device; means for receiving a customized definition of at least oneof the plurality of service attribute information; and means forproviding a plurality of channel information to the device, at least oneof the plurality of channel information comprising the customizeddefinition.
 17. An apparatus for providing content information,comprising: a content server having a first definition of serviceattribute information and a second definition of custom attributeinformation, wherein the service attribute information corresponds to abase service operable to provide at least a portion of a presentation toa device; and a generator module operable to generate and transmit asystem information message having at least one customized channeldefinition for transmission to the device, wherein the customizedchannel definition comprises a predetermined combination of at least aportion of the first definition of the service attribute information anda corresponding portion of the second definition of the custom attributeinformation.
 18. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising acustomized channel definition for each one of a plurality of retailersoperable to provide to the device the base service corresponding to thecustomized channel definition.
 19. The apparatus of claim 17, whereinthe customized channel definition defines at least a portion of theservice attribute information for replacement by a corresponding portionof a custom attribute information.
 20. The apparatus of claim 17,wherein the customized channel definition defines changing the serviceattribute information with the custom attribute information for at leastone of a channel icon, a channel weight, a name of the presentation, adescription of the presentation, a reference to additional informationabout the presentation, a description of the reference to additionalinformation, a rating associated with the presentation, and anindication of a type of device required to access the reference toadditional information.
 21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein thecustomized channel definition defines changing the service attributeinformation with the custom attribute information for a datacastpresentation element associated with the presentation.
 22. The apparatusof claim 17, wherein the customized channel definition defines anassociation between the base service and an auxiliary service thatprovides auxiliary presentations to supplement the base service.
 23. Theapparatus of claim 22, wherein the auxiliary service comprises at leastone of an intro, an outro, an advertisement, a barker, a universalresource locator (URL), and a datacast presentation to supplement thebase service.
 24. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the customizedchannel definition defines changing the service attribute informationwith the custom attribute information for at least one of an indicatorthat determines if the presentation comprises an auxiliary presentation,and an identification of the auxiliary presentation associated with thepresentation.
 25. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the customizedchannel definition defines changing the service attribute informationwith the custom attribute information for each one of a plurality ofcontent retailers, wherein a predetermined one of the plurality ofcontent retailers is operable to provide the presentation and thecustomized channel information to the device.
 26. The apparatus of claim17, wherein the system information message includes a media presentationguide block that defines a media presentation guide on the device basedon the customized channel definition.
 27. The apparatus of claim 17,wherein the content server is operable to provide a customizedpresentation to the device based on the customized channel definition.28. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the service attribute informationfurther comprises presentation-specific service attribute informationfor at least one of a plurality of presentations, wherein the customattribute information comprises presentation-specific custom attributeinformation for at least the one presentation, and wherein thecustomized channel definition defines changing the presentation-specificservice attribute information with the presentation-specific customattribute information for at least the one presentation.
 29. A methodfor presenting content information, comprising: receiving a definitionof service attribute information corresponding to a base service,wherein the base service is operable to provide at least a portion of apresentation to a device; receiving a definition of custom attributeinformation; and generating a view of custom channel information basedon a predetermined combination of the defined custom attributeinformation with the defined service attribute information.
 30. Themethod of claim 29, wherein receiving the defined custom attributeinformation further comprises receiving a definition of custom attributeinformation for each one of a plurality of retailers operable to provideto the device the base service.
 31. The method of claim 30, furthercomprising receiving subscription information associated with asubscription to content provided by one of the plurality of retailers,wherein generating the view further comprises generating the view basedon combining the defined service attribute information with the definedcustom attribute information associated with the one retailer associatedwith the subscription information.
 32. The method of claim 30, furthercomprising receiving the definition of service attribute informationcorresponding to the base service for each of a plurality of baseservices, and wherein receiving the defined custom attribute informationfurther comprises receiving a definition of custom attribute informationfor each of the plurality of service attribute information correspondingto each of the plurality of base services receivable by the device fromat least a respective one of the plurality of retailers.
 33. The methodof claim 29, wherein generating further comprises replacing at least aportion of the defined service attribute information with acorresponding portion of the defined custom attribute information. 34.The method of claim 29, wherein the defined custom attribute informationfurther comprises at least one of a channel icon, a channel weight, aname of the presentation, a description of the presentation, a referenceto additional information about the presentation, a description of thereference to additional information, a rating associated with thepresentation, and an indication of a type of device required to accessthe reference to additional information.
 35. The method of claim 29,wherein generating further comprises generating a custom datacastpresentation associated with the presentation.
 36. The method of claim29, wherein generating comprises associating the base service with anauxiliary service that provides auxiliary presentations to supplementthe base service.
 37. The method of claim 36, further comprisingpresenting at least one of an intro, an outro, an advertisement, abarker, a universal resource locator (URL), and a datacast presentationas a supplement the base service.
 38. The method of claim 29, whereinreceiving the definition of custom attribute information furthercomprises receiving a definition of custom attribute information foreach of a plurality of content retailers, and wherein generating theview of custom channel information further comprises replacing at leasta portion of the service attribute information with a respective portionof one of the plurality of custom attribute information corresponding tothe one of the plurality of content retailers providing thecorresponding base service to the device.
 39. The method of claim 29,wherein generating further comprises generating a media presentationguide based on the defined custom attribute information.
 40. The methodof claim 29, wherein generating further comprises generating acustomized presentation based on the defined custom attributeinformation.
 41. The method of claim 29, wherein receiving thedefinition of service attribute information corresponding to a baseservice further comprises receiving a definition ofpresentation-specific service attribute information for at least one ofa plurality of presentations, wherein receiving the definition of customattribute information further comprises receiving a definition ofpresentation-specific custom attribute information for at least the onepresentation, and wherein generating the view of custom channelinformation further comprises replacing the presentation-specificservice attribute information with the presentation-specific customattribute information for the corresponding presentation.
 42. The methodof claim 29, wherein generating the view of the custom channel furthercomprises generating a view of a combination of real-time media and nonreal-time media.
 43. A computer program resident in a computer readablemedium that, when executed, directs a computer device to perform theactions of: receiving a definition of service attribute informationcorresponding to a base service, wherein the base service is operable toprovide at least a portion of a presentation to a device; receiving adefinition of custom attribute information; and generating a view ofcustom channel information based on a predetermined combination of thedefined custom attribute information with the defined service attributeinformation.
 44. At least one processor configured to perform theactions of: receiving a definition of service attribute informationcorresponding to a base service, wherein the base service is operable toprovide at least a portion of a presentation to a device; receiving adefinition of custom attribute information; and generating a view ofcustom channel information based on a predetermined combination of thedefined custom attribute information with the defined service attributeinformation.
 45. A wireless device, comprising: means for receiving adefinition of service attribute information corresponding to a baseservice, wherein the base service is operable to provide at least aportion of a presentation to a device; means for receiving a definitionof custom attribute information; and means for generating a view ofcustom channel information based on a predetermined combination of thedefined custom attribute information with the defined service attributeinformation.
 46. A wireless device, comprising: a computer platformhaving a data repository comprising a first definition and a seconddefinition, the first definition defining service attribute informationcorresponding to a base service operable to provide at least a portionof a presentation, the second definition defining custom attributeinformation; and a media manager module on the computer platform andoperable to initiate generation of a view of custom channel informationbased on a predetermined combination of the defined custom attributeinformation with the defined service attribute information.
 47. Thewireless device of claim 46, wherein the second definition definingcustom attribute information further defines custom attributeinformation for each one of a plurality of retailers operable to provideto the device the base service.
 48. The wireless device of claim 47,wherein the data repository further comprises subscription informationassociated with a subscription to content provided by one of theplurality of retailers, wherein the media manager module is furtheroperable to initiate generation of the view based on combining thedefined service attribute information with the defined custom attributeinformation associated with the one retailer associated with thesubscription information.
 49. The wireless device of claim 47, whereinthe first definition of service attribute information comprises serviceattribute information for each of a plurality of base services, andwherein the second definition of custom attribute information furthercomprises custom attribute information for each of the plurality ofservice attribute information corresponding to each of the plurality ofbase services receivable by the device from at least a respective one ofthe plurality of retailers.
 50. The wireless device of claim 46, whereinthe predetermined combination comprises overwriting the defined customattribute information onto the defined service attribute information.51. The wireless device of claim 46, wherein the defined customattribute information further comprises at least one of a channel icon,a channel weight, a name of the presentation, a description of thepresentation, a reference to additional information about thepresentation, a description of the reference to additional information,a rating associated with the presentation, and an indication of a typeof device required to access the reference to additional information.52. The wireless device of claim 46, further comprising a userinterface, and wherein the media manager module is operable to initiatea view comprising a custom datacast presentation associated with thepresentation based on the predetermined combination.
 53. The wirelessdevice of claim 46, further comprising a user interface, wherein thedefined custom attribute information comprises a defined auxiliaryservice, and wherein the media manager module is operable to initiate aview comprising the base service supplemented with the defined auxiliaryservice based on the predetermined combination.
 54. The wireless deviceof claim 53, wherein the defined auxiliary service comprises at leastone of an intro, an outro, an advertisement, a barker, a universalresource locator (URL), and a datacast presentation as a supplement thebase service.
 55. The wireless device of claim 46, wherein the definedcustom attribute information further comprises custom attributeinformation for each of a plurality of content retailers, and whereinthe predetermined combination comprises replacing at least a portion ofthe defined service attribute information with a respective portion ofone of the plurality of defined custom attribute informationcorresponding to the one of the plurality of content retailers providingthe corresponding base service to the device.
 56. The wireless device ofclaim 46, further comprising a user interface, and wherein the mediamanager module is operable to initiate a view comprising a mediapresentation guide based on the defined custom attribute information.57. The wireless device of claim 46, further comprising a userinterface, and wherein the media manager module is operable to initiatea view comprising a customized presentation based on the defined customattribute information.
 58. The wireless device of claim 46, wherein thedefined service attribute information corresponding to the base servicefurther comprises presentation-specific service attribute informationfor at least one of a plurality of presentations, wherein the definedcustom attribute information further comprises presentation-specificcustom attribute information for at least the one presentation, andwherein the predetermined combination comprises replacing thepresentation-specific service attribute information with thepresentation-specific custom attribute information for the correspondingpresentation.
 59. The wireless device of claim 46, wherein the viewcomprises a combination of real-time media and non real-time media.